1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to armature type electrical generators that are useful as power sources for self powered cell phones. That is to say, such generators can be installed within the housing of cell phones to serve as internal sources of electrical power that will operate the cell phones, thus avoiding the need for external electrical power either to operate or recharge such phones.
2. Disadvantages in Prior Practice
Relevant technology to the present invention is described in earlier filed copending application Ser. No. 11/120,255, entitled SELF POWERED CELL PHONES, and Ser. No. 11/133,093, entitled AUTOMATED MOTION PROVIDER FOR SELF POWERED CELL PHONES, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. Generally, those applications teach technologies that are based on forming hollow tracks or raceways of various shapes and wrapping them with conductive wire coils. Sealed within the raceways are permanently magnetic members having shapes complementary to the raceway cross sections, which allows the members to traverse through the raceways when such assemblies are put into physical motion. As a result, magnetic flux passes through the wire coils to electromagnetically generate electrical voltage and current in the wire coils. Such assemblies can be installed within cell phone housings to function as internally generated electrical power for operating the cell phone circuits and/or recharging the phone's batteries.
These electrical generators rely upon motion of the magnetic components, shaped like balls, cylinders or bars, through the hollow raceways that are attached in fixed positions within the cell phone housings. Therefore, the manufacturing tolerances of such components have to be closely controlled to optimize the physical motion of the magnetic members relative to the immobile tracks or raceways. Also, fabrication of the raceways and sealing the magnetic members within them is relatively costly. Moreover, if any malfunction develops within the sealed raceway, it has to be either broken open for repair or discarded and replaced by a new assembly of the components, including the wire coils, thus causing further cost and complexity.